Archive for August, 2014

A new survey from Careerbuilder shows that while unemployment for workers without a high school is high, some of these workers could potentially secure transportation jobs in San Antonio, among other locations.

As of this year, there are 115 occupations that require a high school diploma and pay $20 per hour or more on average.

High-paying occupations for high school graduates aren’t necessarily entry-level jobs. For instance, first-line supervisors, regardless of discipline, typically require 1-5 years of prior work experience.

“While the pursuit of higher education is the best bet for gainful employment, it is a myth that only good jobs go to college graduates and that workers with high school degrees are destined to low-wage careers,” said Rosemary Haefner, vice president of human resources for CareerBuilder. “It’s important to note, however, that most high-paying jobs available to high school grads involve skill sets that require extensive post-secondary training or several-years’ worth of prior experience, and are often in fields that have seen declining employment in recent years.”
In several of these jobs, workers may need to attend vocational school or other non-college-level training programs to achieve licensure or certification. Additionally, entry-level requirements will vary by state, locality and employer.

Brident Dental & Orthodontics is a dental services organization located throughout Texas, including Dallas, Fort Worth, San Antonio and Austin.

The company said the new office will be in San Antonio at 6700 S. Flores St., Suite 101. This new San Antonio office offers a full-range of dental and orthodontic services to its patients.

The new office is open Monday through Friday from 9:00 a.m. to 7:00 p.m. and Saturdays from 8:00 a.m. to 4:30 p.m.

Brident Dental is affiliated with a dental and oral health maintenance organization that provides dental services in over 180 office locations with over 4,000 team members.

Brident Dental accepts most private insurance plans and Medicaid. In addition, Brident offices have same day and next day appointments and a bilingual staff.

“We are thrilled to join the San Antonio community as its newest provider in high-quality, affordable health care,” said Dr. Tamara Garcia, Managing Doctor for Brident Dental San Antonio. “Brident Dental has focused on improving the quality and accessibility of oral health care in communities like San Antonio for more than 60 years.”

For patients without dental insurance, Brident is offering a New Patient Special of $39, which includes Exam and X-rays, regularly $180, as well as enrollment in a discount plan for a full range of dental services at discounted rates. Additionally, Brident offers its patients no interest payment plans.

The survey found that one in five companies (21 percent) reported they have deskilled workers, i.e., replaced employees with automation. Among companies with more than 500 employees, the number is 30 percent.

The vast majority (68 percent) of companies who have replaced workers with automation said their adoption of new technology resulted in new positions being added in their firms.

Thirty-five percent of companies that deskilled workers said they ended up creating more jobs in their firms than they had prior to the automation.

Since 2002, 257 occupations experienced a decline in employment, roughly one third of all U.S. jobs. At the same time, 483 occupations (61 percent) grew 1 percent or more. The hourly earnings for the growing occupations were nearly $2 higher than the declining occupations.

“Technological advancements have not only increased productivity, but historically have led to an expansion of employment,” said Matt Ferguson, CEO of CareerBuilder and co-author of The Talent Equation. “While automation may eliminate some jobs, it also creates other jobs that are higher paying and lifts the standard of living for the economy as a whole. One of the greatest challenges the U.S. faces today is sufficiently preparing the workforce for the influx of more knowledge-based jobs that will likely result from progress in robotics and other STEM-related fields (science, technology, engineering and math).”

While some of the losses and gains can be attributed to economic cycles and globalization, arguably automation has also had a significant influence on employment shifts. Consider these examples:

The Internet

The ubiquitous use of the Internet negatively impacted employment in a variety of areas. Travel Agents lost more than 38,000 jobs from 2002 to 2014 as a slew of automated travel web sites were established. This represents a 34 percent decline in a field paying $16.17 per hour.

At the same time, the number of Software Developers and Web Developers in the U.S. increased by 195,000 from 2002 to 2014, paying $43 per hour.

Automation of Data

The automation of data collection and reporting also claimed its fair share of casualties. Data Entry Keyers lost more than 43,000 jobs from 2002 to 2014, a 16 percent decline in a field paying $14 per hour.

At the same time, the widespread adoption of using big data to make smarter business decisions and develop better products and services created a big demand for people who know how to interpret data and make it meaningful for organizations. Market Research Analysts added more than 99,000 jobs from 2002 to 2014, a 28 percent increase in a field paying $29.18 per hour.